An Eye Opener For Education Financing CollegeWith escalating cost of college education in today’s world, education financing college is a major concern for students as well as their parents. Little but they know that there are plethora of options available to them. Now, students need not be solely dependent on their parent’s money to finance their college education. There are various agencies who can help them out. If a student is opting for higher education there is money available to help him. The money can come either from the government, his place of study or other sources. Two types of help are most common - non-repayable grants and student loans. For a new full-time student, the financial help he can get depends on course taken, place of living during the course and individual circumstances. The financial help includes tuition fee loans to cover the full cost of tuition fees, living cost loans to cover the cost of living expenses, grants for living costs, bursaries and scholarships from universities and colleges. One can expect extra help if he has children or adult dependants, or has a disability or specific learning difficulty. Part-time students are eligible for only non-repayable grants towards tuition fees and course costs. Also, as a part-time student, income related benefits can be claimed. Any fees or course grant received is not counted as income for various calculations like taxes etc. To qualify for student finance, the candidate and his course must satisfy the stipulated criteria. This means that certain conditions, for example, concerning his age, where he normally lives and whether he has studied before, must be met. The criteria differ from countries to countries and depend on individual colleges too. For example, some college grant finances to only those student who are proper residents of that country. In some colleges, grant is allowed only for higher education whereas others allow it for elementary courses like initial teacher training. Many colleges offer bursaries to all students. It is better to equip oneself with prior knowledge of above said information before applying for them. It is well worth contacting universities and colleges to find out exactly what they are offering.Students are often worried about repayment of student loan. Most colleges are quite lenient in this area. Most of them do not ask students to start repayment until they have completed the course and started earning over a certain amount. This eases a lot of pressure from students and they can concentrate more on their studies |